Thank You. The interesting matchup will be Fairland liking to press and teams not having much success pressing Joe's. In past games the teams that press Joe's usually give up easy baskets. The flip side is that Joe's likes to press as well. Sounds like whoever can press the best. Excited to watch this one. Also what team can focus and play it's best at 10:45 in the am.

Thank You. The interesting matchup will be Fairland liking to press and teams not having much success pressing Joe's. In past games the teams that press Joe's usually give up easy baskets. The flip side is that Joe's likes to press as well. Sounds like whoever can press the best. Excited to watch this one. Also what team can focus and play it's best at 10:45 in the am.

I wonder if the height for Fairland on their press will cause some problems for St. Joe's passing, or if St. Joe's will be to quick for them, and just dribble around them.

Fairland is long, athletic and big at every position. I don't know Vasj speed, but you won't kill the Dragons on the boards. I have watched Fairland for several games, and their length has given teams problems, but not knowing anything about Vasj, I can't say if it will to them, doubtful it will. Good luck to Fairland.

Would really love to see Fairland win, as I'm a big fan of small rural schools dong well in the tourney, but this one will get ugly quick.....a lot of schools have come into matchups with VASJ in the past thinking that they have an idea what's coming and just can't match up. I don't see this one being any different.

Took in Fairland-Hiland Sat night. I think Fairland is a little bigger than the heights listed above. In the regional program the 2 and 3 were listed at 6-3 and 6-4 and that looked about right.

They were just bigger and better than Hiland - and played better in the 2nd half. I really liked Thomas and Short. Every time Hiland tried to sneak back in it, those guys would hit a big shot. The big fella is a decent offensive player, but his biggest asset is how many shots he blocks and alters in the paint.

They can run and press, but they didn't do a lot of it Sat. They picked their spots. Part of the reason they probably didn't was Hiland likes to do that and once they got a good lead, playing fast was the only way for Hiland to come back. So, they mostly just grinded - and did it well.

All that said, it's a game of match ups and none of that will probably apply to VASJ. But Fairland is a really nice team and they will be better next year. They need VASJ to under-perform, try to make it a grinder, get some breaks, keep it close, and try to steal it at the end. It's a lot to ask, but I remember Garaway pulled it off about 10 years ago.

VASJ will be Fairland's toughest opponent of the year, and will be the favorite by most to advance. For the size of school they are, the Vikings play probably the toughest schedule in the state, including a win at ASVSM. The Dragons, though, have several positives going for them. One, they have the same starting 5 from a year ago, with basically the same rotation. Two, they have developed a good chemistry because of this, and thirdly, they have played a challenging schedule, including a win over traditional power Dayton Chaminade Julienne, and also Huntington High WV, which in Ohio would be a D1 school. Huntington won the 2014 and 2015 Class AAA WV state championships.

Fairland is athletic and fairly long, but VASJ plays a lot of teams like that. Against Hiland, the Dragons missed too many layups which could be costly vs. the Vikings. It will be interesting to see what defense FHS employs against VASJ, because the Dragons are at their best when they are pressing and playing half court man to man. They do favor an uptempo game. They are also very capable of knocking down the 3 ball by multiple players. 6-2 junior Luke Thomas had 24 points vs. Hiland. Junior Isaiah Howell was the D3 SE district POY, averaging 15 PPG.

I think it's very important for Fairland to get off to a good start, to give them confidence on this big stage.

VASJ, with this 16th appearance in the state tournament, breaks a tie with my Portsmouth Trojans for the 2nd most state appearances all time.

VASJ will be Fairland's toughest opponent of the year, and will be the favorite by most to advance. For the size of school they are, the Vikings play probably the toughest schedule in the state, including a win at ASVSM. The Dragons, though, have several positives going for them. One, they have the same starting 5 from a year ago, with basically the same rotation. Two, they have developed a good chemistry because of this, and thirdly, they have played a challenging schedule, including a win over traditional power Dayton Chaminade Julienne, and also Huntington High WV, which in Ohio would be a D1 school. Huntington won the 2014 and 2015 Class AAA WV state championships.

Fairland is athletic and fairly long, but VASJ plays a lot teams like that. Against Hiland, the Dragons missed too many layups which could be costly vs. the Vikings. It will be interesting to see what defense FHS employs against VASJ, because the Dragons are at their best when they are pressing and playing half court man to man. They do favor an uptempo game.

I think it's very important for Fairland to get off to a good start, to give them confidence on this big stage.

VASJ, with this 16th appearance in the state tournament, breaks a tie with my Portsmouth Trojans for the 2nd most state appearances all time.

Nice summary Dave. By the way, we played football in Portsmouth a few years ago and I must say I enjoyed the game, the fans, and historic venue. We also played in nearby Wheelersburg in 2009 and enjoyed ourselves there as well. All good people.

VASJ played and beat Huntington last year at their tournament after they were AAA state Champs. They had a blast at that tournament and the bonding developed on that trip carried all the way through the post season. This game will be interesting because Joe's not only has size but they are fast. The big advantage VASJ usually has but is not mentioned is coaching. Joe's gets many easy looks and buckets because they are so efficient. There are not many in game situations that arise that makes Joe's panic. I can tell that is not the case with many opponents. If Fairland presses a lot then they are probably pretty good at braking the press. It will be interesting to see if they have seen one run with the intensity, speed and athletes Joe's has. Size will not matter due to the ball handling of Higgins. This should be the toughest test both teams have had in the tourney to this point. Both teams sound like they share similar styles and abilities. It will come down to who executes the best.